DT 26526

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26526

Hints and tips by Big Dave

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought. You can also add your assessment by selecting from one to five stars at the bottom of the post.

Across

1a Love argument about transport (7)
{WORSHIP} – a word meaning to love or adore is created by reversing an argument and following it with a verb meaning to transport by sea

5a Be glum when suspect goes round investigating at the start — that’s Poirot’s area (7)
{BELGIUM} – BE is followed by an anagram (suspect) of GLUM around the first letter (at the start) of Investigating to get the country whose most famous subject is the fictional Hercule Poirot – can you name six famous people from here?!

9a Keep silent about toboggan? On the contrary, one takes it on holiday (7)
{LUGGAGE} – “on the contrary” is an instruction to reverse the wordplay, so put a toboggan around a verb meaning to keep someone silent to get something one takes on holiday

10a One isn’t prepared for excitement (7)
{TENSION} – an anagram (prepared) of ONE ISN’T gives this excitement

11a Very cross with broken meter in city (9)
{EXTREMELY} – a word meaning very or greatly is created by putting the letter shaped like a cross and an anagram (broken) of METER inside a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire

12a Working’s funny? Not in the morning (5)
{USING} – to get a word meaning working or employing drop AM (not a.m. / in the morning) from a word meaning funny

22a Film star’s tirade after end of screening (5)
{GRANT} – this old film star, born Archibald Leach in Bristol, is derived by putting a tirade after the last letter (end) of screeninG

23a Site Coe is developing for clubs (9)
{SOCIETIES} – an anagram (developing) of SITE COE gives these clubs

25a Certain a dress is kinky around university (7)
{ASSURED} – to get this adjective meaning certain put an anagram (kinky) of A DRESS around U(niversity)

26a Insinuated naughty child made up stories (7)
{IMPLIED} – a word meaning insinuated is a charade of a naughty child and a verb meaning made up stories

27a Awfully rude about firm — Master requires propriety (7)
{DECORUM} – put an anagram (awfully) of RUDE around an abbreviation of a firm and then add M(aster) to get a word meaning propriety or good manners

28a American inside turned angry, having a certain temper (7)
{NATURED} – put A(merican) inside an anagram (angry) of TURNED to get an adjective meaning having a certain temper

Down

1d Most outrageous Tom Sharpe novel captivated boy (7)
{WILDEST} – to get a word meaning most outrageous put a Tom Sharpe novel (4) around (captivated) a shortened form of a boy’s name

2d Series of races great at sea, thanks (7)
{REGATTA} – this Series of yacht or boat races is derived from an anagram (at sea) of GREAT and a short word of thanks

3d Strain to keep holding last bit of lucre (5)
{HEAVE} – a word meaning to strain or pull is created when a word meaning to keep or own is placed around the final letter (last bit) of lucrE

4d Former priest going bald? (9)
{PRECEDING} – a word meaning former or earlier is a charade of P(riest) and a word meaning going bald

5d Crazy corner in motor race? Just the opposite (5)
{BATTY} – a word meaning crazy is derived by putting a motor-cycle race inside a corner – similar construct to that used in 9 across

6d French Polish? (9)
{LANGUAGES} – French and Polish are two examples (indicated by the question mark) of these

7d Byatt’s first is a first (7)
{INITIAL} – This authoress is known by two of this kind of letter, and as an adjective it means first – my least-favourite clue in this puzzle

8d Principal source of food for cattle around America (7)
{MANAGER} – this principal supervisor is created by putting a feeding trough for cattle around A(merica)

14d Art peels off top of room — one might have to smooth things over (9)
{PLASTERER} – an anagram (off) of ART PEELS followed by the initial (top) letter of Room to give a tradesman who might have to smooth things over

16d Resistance ahead of heartless schooling cut (9)
{REDUCTION} – put R(esistance) ahead of a word meaning schooling without the middle letter (heartless) to get a cut or decrease

17d Enrolled Nurse happy to tour northern country (7)
{ENGLAND} – follow the abbreviation of an Enrolled Nurse with a word meaning happy placed around (to tour) N(orthern) to get a country

18d Hugging fantastic lass I consider an excellent thing (7)
{CLASSIC} – hidden inside (hugging) the clue is an excellent thing, like an old motor car

20d More curious about start of improvisation getting louder (7)
{NOISIER} – put a word meaning more curious around the first letter (start) of Improvisation to get a word meaning getting louder

21d Around rim, claret settled (7)
{RESIDED} – put the colour of claret (3) around a rim or edge to get a word meaning settled or inhabited

23d Soil’s lifted to insert European plant (5)
{SEDUM} – reverse this wet soft earth (soil), not forgetting the S from ‘S, and then insert E(uropean) to get a rock plant with white, yellow or pink flowers

24d Suppose EC’s left to house a migrant (5)
{EXPAT} – start with a word meaning to suppose or presume then swap the EC for an A (EC’s left to house A) to get a migrant, like Pommers or Pommette!

70 Comments

Can’t say I enjoyed this today. Didn’t help I got the wrong Tom Sharpe book and still got a word to fit into 1D. Thought a lot of the the clues seemed fairly vacuous and some very ambiguous. No favourites today I’m afraid.

I wasn’t big on the enjoyment factor today either – it was all a bit of a grind and the clues didnt seem to gel like the do on e.g. Wednesday. About average/hard for solving time.
Thanks to BD and to the setter.

Nothing startling, but I thought it was ok. I agree that 7d was awful, however I did like to see my favourite comic writer get a mention in 1d.
For those that didn’t like this one, the toughie is better, and for the most part, not overly tough.
Thanks to setter, and to BD.

Morning Dave I think I agree with the 3* today I found the bottom half easier than the top once again, top R/H corner last in for me, didn’t know any Tom Sharpe novels but did manage to work the answer out, didn’t help in getting 4d by spelling extremely wrong! and didn’t help myself by putting ‘replaster’ in 14d! just one favourite clue today 24d, I thought that was quite clever Thanks for blog needed it to help me sort out that corner!

But though even words like “juju-flop,” “swut,” and “turlingdrome” are now perfectly acceptable in common usage, there is one word that is still beyond the pale. The concept it embodies is so revolting that the publication or broadcast of the word is utterly forbidden in all parts of the galaxy except one – where they don’t know what it means. That word is “Belgium” and it is only ever used by loose-tongued people like Zaphod Beeblebrox in situations of dire provocation.

I’m sure that a better list could be made, I was only trying to get to six. As for the ‘scrapings’, I assume you mean the last one primarily…
(Or maybe you don’t?) … Although he’s probably indirectly had more influence on the modern game than any other player.

I did find out that Audrey Hepburn was Belgian, so next time she can replace one of the tennis players.

Sorry, Nick, Audrey Hepburn was born in Belgium (there, I said it again…) but she was Anglo-Irish on her father’s side and from Dutch aristocracy on her mother’s. Her mother was a born baronesse van Heemstra. She was never Belgian.

Totally agree. The Daily is quite pedestrian while the Toughie managed to raise the corners of my buccal cavity.
By the way – what happened to Spring? Here in West Bridgford the shorts worn last week hang forlornly in the wardrobe & I’ve just put a sweater on…never cast a clout until may is out as they used to say

Cloudy grey in East Kent today but we are promised a return of spring for the weekend. I never cast a clout too early – think it comes from childhood when we didn’t go into summer uniform until after the Easter holidays, regardless of the weather so we were sometimes a bit chilly as I recall.

I have just been for my post-work two and a half mile walk and can report that the may most definitely isn’t out here. We have blackthorn (sloe) and wild cherry but the buds on all the hawthorn trees are a long way from opening.

I actually quite enjoyed this one. Nothing too contentious, I thought and a pleasure to solve. Quite liked 11a, 5d and 16d, although 6d was – what’s the word? I didn’t particularly like 15a as a definition for mercenary [although the word “maybe” was in the clue] and it was my last one with all the checking letters. Thanks to setter and BD for the review

I didn’t enjoy this one as much as usual and found it really quite difficult – it’s taken me a long time and, although I finished it ie had an answer for everything, I needed the hints to explain quite a few.
I liked 6 and 14d.
Thanks to the mystery setter and to Big Dave for the VERY much needed hints.
Chilly and grey in Oxford – off up the garden to see if any of our veggie seeds have germinated.

By the way, BD, I’ve just had a look on the internet at an “Alphabetical List of Famous Belgians”. There are 263 names on there, and Hercule Poirot is number 160. I’d be hard pressed to name half a dozen though!!

I’m afraid this was not my favourite puzzle. It just didn’t ever produce that “feel good ” moment when the answer clicks in.Now in 22a are we talking of Hugh or Cary?
Thankyou anyway mystery setter and of course BD.

Think this was bad? You should see the cryptic in today’s Guardian. The clue to 1a is ‘Late boss to tidy 5’. Ok, so before we can solve 1a we need to solve 5. But the clue at 5 is simply ‘See 18’. Ok, let’s look at 18. This clue is ‘What is 6? 2 says “fruit and veg”.’
Oh god, now we’ve got to solve 6 and 2 before getting any further…and all this just trying to solve the first chuffing clue. Sorry to mention a crossword in a different paper but I had a look at the Guardian today for old time’s sake, it being my former paper of choice. Won’t happen again, not after that giant ball-ache, promise.
Makes the Telegraph today seem quite decent.

I didn’t think that this crossword was that bad. It was nice to have a crossword where you had to think a bit more deeply about to solve. I think that this one took about the same time as the Toughie. If you want a real challenge today then Anax in the Independent is the one to go for.

Many thanks to the Mysteron for the crossword and to BD for the review.

Late starting (due to a golf day), late finishing (due to not being able to do it!!!) Actually, not strictly true – did do quite a bit and didn’t believe the answers, so had to check the blog to see if I was right. Sorry – have to agree with Skempie (first comment) – didn’t really like it, nothing seemed to flow and I thought was all a bit contrived, but could be that I was just knackered from the 18-hole work-out. And never heard of whatsit Sharpe, so that didn’t help!! tho’ I did get the answer. Wonder what tomorrow will bring? Am in the car for a couple of hours so, if partner is driving, I might have a chance!

That was my understanding, but as she is known by “A S” I thought that it didn’t work very well in the singular. The wordplay is, I believe, referring to B being the initial for Byatt, which is saying that the initial letter is the initial and that’s why I didn’t like it.

I thought the wordplay was just indicating that “A” was Ms Byatt’s first initial (of two). If she’d had only one forename and been known as A Byatt then the first “first” in the clue would have been redundant.

Not sure that 8d is a particularly fair clue, a manger is a trough to place food for cattle to eat from, rather than a source of food. Not sure I would describe a dish or a plate as a source of food!
I’m surprised nobody else has commented on this.

Very late input from me. I Finished it around 17.30 hrs my time but had to drop it as my daughter and granddaughter arrived to take me to The Hague for a Chinese meal then to the Lucent Danstheater for the ballet which was Shen Yun Performing Arts – a magnificent show each act introduced by an Englishman and a Chinese lady who spoke lovely Mandarin – they both spoke English and Chinese.
I recommend the show 100%.
Re the puzzle – I concur with BD and others that it was below the normal.

Looking forward to The Don’s tomorrow! In fact today as it is now 00.14hrs here.

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